Experts say nighttime is right time to kill mosquitoes

Friday

Jun 29, 2007 at 12:01 AMJun 29, 2007 at 6:47 PM

Mosquito-control efforts throughout MetroWest and the Milford area are under way, with some spraying of pesticides and regular analysis of mosquitoes captured in traps, as scientists look for the presence of diseases.

Amanda Smith/Daily News correspondent

Mosquito-control efforts throughout MetroWest and the Milford area are under way, with some spraying of pesticides and regular analysis of mosquitoes captured in traps, as scientists look for the presence of diseases.

Communities have been reporting average to above-average mosquito populations so far this year.

Mosquito-control agencies try to reduce the number of adult mosquitoes by spraying neighborhoods and business areas at night, when those insects are active. They also treat wetlands and storm drains to stop the growth of mosquito larvae.

"People feel a little bit more threatened by mosquitoes than they have in the past," said David Henley, superintendent of East Middlesex Mosquito Control Project, citing recent cases of mosquito-borne illnesses, such as West Nile virus and Eastern equine encephalitis.

State authorities have recorded no cases of either disease this year, but according to Henley, some cases usually show up later in the summer.

East Middlesex Mosquito Control serves Framingham, Sudbury and other communities in eastern Middlesex County. Henley said the program determines spraying schedules based on numbers and types of mosquitoes collected from four traps in each town.

Henley said recent counts in Sudbury showed high counts - more than 1,000 mosquitoes in the sample - in two traps, leading the project to spray in Sudbury on June 25. Framingham has no spraying currently scheduled.

Framingham notifies residents of upcoming spraying using an automated calling system. Residents in all eastern Middlesex towns can access spraying schedules posted each week on the project's Web site at www.town.sudbury.ma.us/services/health/emmcp/.

Central Massachusetts Mosquito Control Project serves 39 cities and towns along the Interstate 495 corridor, including Natick, Marlborough, Milford, Hudson and Shrewsbury. The project is scheduled to spray once a week in each town on its roster, focusing on areas with high levels of mosquito activity.

"We don't just blanket-spray a town," said director of operations Tim McGlinchy.

Residents can request spraying in their neighborhoods by contacting their public health board or the Central Massachusetts Project.

Because residents can report mosquito problems directly to the project, some public health boards are getting fewer complaints about mosquitoes. McGlinchy said the level of complaints his office has received has been "pretty much average."

Evening spraying is done on the following rotation:

U Monday: Northborough, Milford, Hopedale, Berlin, Ashland

U Tuesday: Hudson, Shrewsbury, Holliston

U Wednesday: Marlborough, Natick, Acton, Northbridge

U Thursday: Southborough and Natick

The project treats wetlands and drainage areas with compounds to kill mosquito larvae, but also works through the year to reduce areas containing stagnant water, where mosquitoes breed.

Nancy Allen, director of Public Health in Shrewsbury, recommends homeowners use the same strategy, eliminating containers of standing water on or near their property.

Other residents looking for additional protection often use citronella candles or other repellents.

Deirdre O'Connor, an assistant sanitarian for the Marlborough Public Health Board, said she has recommended a product called Mosquito Beater, made of small pellets of naphthalene, the active ingredient in mothballs. Residents scatter the pellets in their yards for temporary mosquito control in a small area.

Residents in areas served by Eastern Middlesex and Central Massachusetts Mosquito Control can opt out of spraying in their neighborhoods.

Eastern Middlesex asks residents to register by March 1 or contact the agency to have their property excluded from spraying.

Central Massachusetts provides an online request form for residents who wish to be excluded from spraying at www.cmmcp.org.

Henley of Eastern Middlesex said that numbers of residents seeking exclusion from spraying vary from town to town, with about 25 exemptions for Framingham and fewer in Sudbury. He said public concern about mosquitoes may have overshadowed concerns about pesticide use.

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